The ability of landlords to recover the costs of taking action against tenants for dilapidations or indeed any breach of covenant can be fraught. Far from being an automatic entitlement, it will depend upon the wording of the lease. Costs clauses in leases are many and varied - some rather better than others.
Continue Reading...This post was written by Siobhan Hayes, Emma Parsons and Catrin Phillips
On 6 April 2010, the new Community Infrastructure Levy (‘CIL’) Regulations came into force, partially replacing the current system of Section 106 agreements. There won’t be an immediate change in the planning regime, but now is the time to think about the CIL and any potential impact on future developments and transactions.
Continue Reading...This post was written by Marjorie Holmes, Richard Nicoll and Siobhan Hayes.
In our previous posting ‘Land Agreements come under the Competition Law Spotlight’ when government consultation was underway, we reported on the likely impact of Competition Law applying to property deals. Whilst the issue arose out of the Competition Commission’s market investigation into the supply of groceries, the changes that will apply from 6 April 2010 can affect any property agreements and will affect pre-existing agreements as well as anything to be entered into after 6 April. The commercial property world needs a new competition law mindset.
Continue Reading...This post was written by Richard Nicoll, Catrin Phillips and Siobhan Hayes.
A decision by the High Court on the liability of a guarantor has just been published and is already causing concern and consternation in the market.
Continue Reading...This post was written by Mark Hargreaves, Emma Parsons and Catrin Phillips.
Following on from our original blog on the Bribery Bill there have been some changes to the Bill during its speedy passage through Parliament. We have no doubt that this Bill will be enacted before the General Election. Agents, investors and developers do need to be aware of the new law and will be required to review internal procedures and contracts with those supplying services to them to ensure they minimise any risks of a criminal sanction.
Continue Reading...This post was written by Clare Whitaker, Katherine Campbell and Siobhan Hayes.
A decision by the High Court in December has strengthened the position of landlords who sometimes do not get paid during the administration even where the administrator is running the business from the property.
Continue Reading...This post was written by Siobhan Hayes and Richard Nicoll.
Every Tenant’s worst nightmare is to miss a break date in a Lease of unwanted space! With rental demand currently weak, Landlords are likely to take any technical point they can to defeat a Tenant’s break notice and the rental void it would trigger.
Often the decision to serve break notices is left until close to the deadline and with the current disruptions caused by the post strike the risks of slip ups are increased. Tenants need to plan ahead to avoid last minute panics. Also because of the law relating to service, Landlords may not be able to assume that non receipt of a formal notice by the deadline means that the lease continues.
Continue Reading...This post was written by Siobhan Hayes and Clare Whitaker.
We have spent a lot of time thinking about landlords being affected by tenants going into administration over the last year. This posting is about a court case where the landlord’s administrators were trying to postpone the tenant’s application to Court for the grant of a new tenancy under the 1954 Act.
The administrators failed in their attempts to defer the 1954 Act proceedings even though it severely affected the value of the property in question and the amount that was going to be paid out to the secured creditor.
Continue Reading...This post was written by Siobhan Hayes and Lesley Davey.
At the beginning of October the UK’s Competition Commission (CC) recommended to Government that introduces as “competition test” in planning decisions for large grocery stores. This follows on from the CC’s 2008 supermarkets’ investigation where it found that the planning regime helped larger supermarkets restrict competition in local markets. Whether or not the Government takes up the recommendation remains to be seen, however the CC’s investigation has also brought all land agreements under the competition law spotlight.
The Government is currently consulting on whether land agreements generally should continue to be exempt from competition law. At the time the exemption was introduced it was thought that the majority of land agreements would not have a negative impact on competition in markets. However the CC’s supermarkets’ investigation highlighted that provisions in land agreements could impact on competition. If the exemption is removed, landlords and tenants would have to review carefully provisions that we currently think of as quite usual to ensure they do not breach competition law.
This posting considers what effect a removal of the exemption would have on landlords and tenants?
Continue Reading...This post was written by Siobhan Hayes and Katherine Campbell.
This week we have seen the headlines about the Focus DIY Corporate Voluntary Arrangement (CVA). It is reported that landlords have accepted the CVA and that will enable Focus to continue a significant part of the business and to retain a large number of jobs. Welcome news in many respects.
CVAs can have a significant impact on a property investment so this posting considers how CVAs work and their impact on leases?
Continue Reading...This post was written by Siobhan Hayes and Katherine Campbell.
Many landlords use an old remedy to recover unpaid rent from sub-tenants where tenants have gone into default. This is set out in Section 6 of the Law of Distress Amendment Act 1908. The remedy pre-dates the rescue culture intended by administration by nearly a century. Given the increasing number of tenant companies in administration, landlords are asking whether the old Section 6 right survives the moratorium that administration gives to the administrator whilst he tries to restructure or sell the company or its business.
This is an area where there is some legal debate at present. We are of the opinion that landlords can use this remedy but it is untested by case law.
Continue Reading...This post was written by Katherine Campbell and Siobhan Hayes.
Tenants exercising break clauses in their leases are creating plenty of work in the property disputes field at the moment. Many tenants who have the opportunity to break the term of their lease are seizing it, and landlords in return want to find any way possible to challenge the validity of those notices. This posting identifies some of the topics arising on lease breaks.
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